Knicks' Jalen Brunson focused on wins, not personal accolades
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson dribbles up the court during the second half of an NBA game against the Nets on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. Credit: AP/John Minchillo
MIAMI — Jalen Brunson was passed over as an All-Star last month, but he did get an honor from the NBA.
Brunson was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Month Thursday. And as expected, he didn’t make much of it.
“Great honor. Really cool,” Brunson said. “Just keep on moving. I mean, I wasn’t really expecting it. You don’t really play to win individual awards. You just play to try to win as much as you can, win as many games as you can. So when you win, all the individual stuff comes after that, so credit to my teammates.”
“The most important thing I think is the impact on winning,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. “We just love how selfless he is. It’s all about the team. That’s all he cares about. I think it resonates with his teammates and it makes your team function well, so we’re excited about that. Anytime a player gets recognized like that it’s positive and it’s usually a byproduct of the winning. The more you win the more people will get recognized.”
There is an award that could be in the near future for Brunson as the season enters the final stretch — an All-NBA berth.
With injuries limiting some guards, and Brunson’s production and impact on the team, it’s not unreasonable to slot him into the league’s elite. Julius Randle earned second-team All-NBA honors two years ago.
“Do I think about it? No,” Brunson said. “Is it a goal of mine at some point in my career? Yes. But I don’t think about it at all.
“When you’re thinking about it day in and day out, you’re focused on yourself and how can you play for yourself. I just focus on, how can I win the game? What can I do to help my team win the game? When you’re focusing on the team, everything else comes after that. So, when you focus on, what can I do to win this award, it just doesn’t look good.”
Injury update
Miami was without Kyle Lowry Friday as he continues to battle knee issues.
Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
